


all I need is you

by BuddysImpala



Category: Dark is the Night (book series)
Genre: A Hymm in the Silence, A Light Amongst Shadows, Angst, Angst and Fluff, Christmas, Dark, Dark is the Night, Demons, Fluff, Ghost Hunting, Ghosts, James Spencer - Freeform, James is willing to give All The Hugs, M/M, Merry Christmas, Spesher?, To take place between books 1 and 2, WHEW I can now check “wrote the first fic EVER for a fandom” off my bucket list, William Esher - Freeform, William Needs A Hug, Winter, these two I can’t, welcome to the first James SpencerxWilliam Esher fic Ever I hope my mom is proud, what is their ship name
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:33:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21852253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BuddysImpala/pseuds/BuddysImpala
Summary: William has nightmares after a particular ghost hunting session.
Relationships: James Spencer/William Esher
Comments: 3
Kudos: 7





	all I need is you

The flickering flame from the lantern was their only source of light as they crept down the hallway, eyes alert for anything amiss. William, possessing the weaker eyesight of the two, clutched tightly to James’ coat, fingernails digging into the fabric. This was only their second or third job alone — how they’d managed at Whisperwood, William still hadn’t the slightest idea. 

James came to an abrupt stop. William gasped as he ran into him, nearly stumbling back. James reached behind and grabbed his hand.

“Why’d you stop?” William whispered. Why, he didn’t know — they were alone, save for the entities that had driven the Wheelers out of their home. 

James turned toward him, the corner of his lip twitching. The lantern’s flame illuminated his face, the reflection of the flame dancing in James’ golden brown eyes. 

“Because there’s something in front of me.”

William’s breath caught in his throat. “There... is?” He tried to look around James.

“Yes,” James said in total seriousness. He paused. Then, “They’re called stairs, dear William. Quite the helpful platform for going up and— hey!”

A light bubble of laughter burst from James’ lips as William swatted at him. James danced away and William hit nothing but air. He shook his head, grumbling, and James grinned as his lips pulled down in a pout.

“Come now, William. Up we go.”

The moment of merriment faded as quickly as it started, the two of them falling into silence as they climbed the stairs. The same set of stairs that, not three days prior, a spirit had shoved a Miss Elizabeth Wheeler down. Elizabeth, the teenager daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Wheeler, claimed to have felt invisible hands shove against her, and she’d nearly broken her neck. The Wheelers had fled the home immediately after, and called upon Eleanor Bennett, who’d sent James and William to investigate in her place.

When they got to the top of the stairs, they both froze. Something stood at the end of the hall, encased in the shadows but there all the same.

They exchanged a look. William clutched his Bible in one hand, the other reaching for the vial of holy water in his pocket. 

“You there,” James called out, voice impossibly strong and steady. He had his vial out and ready. “Are you the one who has terrorized this family?”

For a moment, there was nothing. The shadow didn’t so much as move

And then the entity screeched, rattling the entire home. It charged them at inhuman speed, morphing as it did, revealing eyes black as coal rotting out of its head.

Before he realized what was happening, James shoved William to the side. William fell to the floor with a cry, the Bible thumping to the ground. Miraculously, the vial containing the holy water did not shatter.

He was struggling to his feet when James screamed.

The scream. The sound of something — _someone_ — falling. 

A body hitting the floor.

And then... nothing.

Time froze. Silence all around him.

Part of him knew. But he didn’t want to believe it.

His body began to react before his mind did. Tears, hot and stinging, pricked at his eyes. Squeezing his eyes shut, William pushed himself to his feet. He stumbled blindly toward the stairs, reaching for the banister.

At the edge of the stairs, he finally forced his eyes open. Tears stained his glasses, smudging his vision, but he did not wipe them away.

He looked down.

James lay at the bottom the stairs. His neck twisted at an unnatural angle. His eyes were still open, wide, unseeing. The vial of holy water lay shattered, just out of reach of his outstretched hand.

William opened his mouth.

And began to scream.

***

“William? William, darling, wake up!”

William gasped, jerking awake. His eyes were wet, his throat raw. Blindly, he reached for his glasses. A blurry figure stood in front of him, its hands on his shoulders.

“J-James?” He found his glasses and adjusted them on his nose. James was staring at him, eyes wide, lips parted in an unspoken question.

William’s entire body trembled. At the realization that it had been nothing but a nightmare, fresh tears rolled down his face. He couldn’t stop them and he sat shaking like a leaf in bed. When he looked down, he realized he was clutching the front of James’ shirt so tightly that his knuckles were white.

“The Wheeler case again?” James asked quietly.

Wordlessly, William nodded. He wasn’t sure he could speak even if he wanted to.

That night, James had been shoved down the stairs by a shadow black entity, just as Elizabeth Wheeler had been. He’d been lucky, escaping the incident with nothing worse than a sprained ankle, and they had been successful in exorcising the entity, but that didn’t stop William’s subconscious from worsening the event. Despite being over a year later, he could not get the mental image of James lying dead with a broken neck out of his mind.

“James, pl-please—“

James knew what he needed before William could finish the request, and William gratefully took the couple drops of laudanum that graced his tongue. After swallowing, he laid his head on James’ shoulder, not daring to close his eyes. That only brought back the image of James lying at the bottom of the stairs. 

William was still trembling a little when James wrapped his arms around him. He pressed a kiss to the top of William’s scalp, and then used a hand to tilt his face upwards. William met the kiss with relief, reveling in the feeling of James’ lips against his, warm and alive. 

When they pulled away, William cupped James’ face in his hands and rested their foreheads together. James’ gentle touch caressed his face, tracing his eyes and cheeks and lips, and his breathing finally began to even out.

“I don’t know how much it’ll help,” James mumbled, “but Merry Christmas, William.”

William’s eyes met his, lips forming a soft ‘O’ of surprise. “It’s Christmas?”

“Well, more like three a.m. on Christmas morning. But, yes, it’s Christmas.” Scooting away a little, James took William’s hand and kissed each one of his fingers, and then his knuckles. Turning William’s hand over, he finished with a kiss to the center of his palm. “However, you don’t get your present until we see the sun.”

William’s lips twitched into a small smile at that. “What if it snows?” 

“Well, then, I guess you’ll never get your present,” James grinned.

Sighing, William pressed closer. His eyes had begun to take on a hazy look as his medicine started to take effect. “I don’t care if I never get another present as long as you stay here with me.”

James’ grin softened into a small smile as he ran his fingers through William’s hair. “I’ll never leave your side, darling.”

“Good. ‘S’illegal.”

James watched with soft eyes as William’s own began to flutter close. As his breathing began to give away to soft snores, James held him close to his chest.

“I love you, dear William. Sleep well.”

**Author's Note:**

> I love these two so MUCH and I wish indie works were more popular because I need someone to SCREAM WITH, PLEASE AND THANKS.
> 
> Cue me convincing everyone I know to read this series.
> 
> If anyone is actually reading this, uh... comment if you wanna?


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